Lauren Hom’s Typography is All the Rage

By
Ron K
-

They say don’t judge a book by its cover, but can you judge a book by its font? Letterer, Lauren Hom, probably does just that, being an expert in her field.

Her bold and graphic lettering is known for its playfulness and wit. Making good use of pen and paper, Hom’s typography covers anything from cards and posters to magazines and notebooks; working for giants like Starbucks, Google, TIME Magazine, and Microsoft.

“I find that I’m happiest when creating; so, when I’m not working, you can find me—HAHA just kidding when am I not kind of working on something?” she writes on her website.

“My least favorite letter to draw is probably K,” she admitted in an interview with Dumb Questions. “I’ve been lettering for four years and they still bamboozle me all the time. I don’t know if I have disdain for any other letter form in that same way. K’s can suck it.”

Take a look.

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Weeeeee where my Cleveland people at? ?? I had the pleasure of lettering and illustrating the cover + interior of this month’s issue of @clevelandmagazine ✏️✏️✏️ which is all about the most Cleveland-y things in Cleveland! I had so much fun working on this meaty project because I got to flex my illustration skills AND learn a ton about Cleveland. If you see one in the wild, snap a pic and tag me in your post or Story!✨? . Special thanks to @mqba for the awesome project and art direction & also to @annlettering for helping me with production on the interior spread so I didn’t have to pull an all-nighter ?. 2019 is the year of me asking for (and truly, truly accepting) help from others to run my business as it grows ?

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Ending my intense month of international work travel with a few days in Budapest with @twahlin to try to turn our work brains off for a hot second. The itinerary? Soaking in thermal baths, eating ice cream, and hanging out at bars and cafes without our laptops (you know, like most people do when they go to bars and reataurants) ?⠀ ~⠀ After doing the #digitalnomad thing from 2016-2017 and still traveling extensively for business nowadays, my lines between work and travel are blurred. And dating another entrepreneur, while wonderful in many ways, means that the line between my professional life and and personal life often gets blurred too. I have a hard time completely stepping away from my work because I genuinely enjoy it, but at the same time, I know that taking a true break is necessary recharging time.⠀ ~⠀ ?Other creative freelancers and entrepreneurs: what are your favorite ways to take a break and give your work brain a rest, in both big and small ways? What strategies have worked (and haven't worked) for you? ??Here are a few of mine:⠀ ~⠀ I don't bring my laptop into the bedroom anymore, and I've been mostly good about leaving my phone out of bedside reach too. When we're home, I take the time to plan, shop for, and cook 90% of our meals from scratch. Over the last 4 months, I've learned how to make tofu, almond + coconut milks, kombucha, bread, crackers, and seitan. Cooking brings me into this amazing peaceful yet productive state (win win!). Tom and I both take Saturdays off *completely* to spend time with each other in a non-worky way. Sundays are questionable, as Monday to-do list thoughts tend to creep in, but hey, we're trying ?

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Would you subscribe to HOM Magazine?!? Jk this isn’t real – it’s this week’s #HOMwork assignment: if your creative business was a magazine, what would it’s February 2019 cover look like?⭐️⠀ .⠀ So, why magazines?? One way to help curate your creative voice is to think of your brand as a magazine. There’s a TON we can learn from these glossy publications, specifically the way they structure their content. Think of a health magazine – the overarching theme is health but within that topic, there are more specific sections: exercise, mental health, diet, etc. (If you're more of a TV person, think of yourself like the Food Network and your sections as the shows!)?⠀ .⠀ Consider everything a magazine cover needs to convey to the viewer from the broad genre to the specific think pieces. What types of articles would be inside, and what would the catchy cover lines be (aka old-school clickbait)?? Then illustrate or letter the cover in your style!✏️⠀ .⠀ ??P.S. There is one *very real thing* about this faux-cover: exclusive access to my brand spankin’ new Creative Resource Library! It’s packed with FREE tutorials, worksheets and resources for designers & creative entrepreneurs, and I’ll be updating it with new goodies every month. When you sign up for #HOMwork with the link in my profile, I’ll email you the library link + password right away??✨ Whatcha waiting’ for?!

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Sometimes less really is more ✨?✈️ Did you know that I packed up my entire life/studio into a backpack and traveled around the world for all of 2016 and half of 2017? So did @twahlin, which led him to build his company @packhacker. I painted this mural in his office to commemorate our adventures + minimalist travel styles (and to remind him of me all day, duh ?). . The mural was painted with a homemade chalk paint I whipped up: one part cornstarch, one part plaster, one part water. I was interested in seeing if I could achieve a chalk-look while having more of a painterly stroke…and it worked! ?? . Is anyone else a carry-on only traveler? Share your favorite packing tip below ? My favorite quick tip (for longer term travel) is swapping out your toiletries for smaller, solid versions like shampoo bars, solid perfume, and lotion bars. They last WAY longer and you don’t have to worry about anything spilling in your bag ? . . . . . #chalkboard #chalkart #chalkmural #muralartist #minimalisttravel #onebag #digitalnomadgirls #digitalnomadcouple #womenwhopaint #travelingartist #topodesigns #teamtopo #goodtype #typegang #typespire #designspiration #showusyourtype

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How I turned $100 into $30,000 in one year (??swipe to hear me talk about the nitty gritty details of using the simple passion project @willletterforlunch to grow my business) . One of the benefits of a good passion project is increased freelance work! ?✍?️ Don't believe me? Here's a tasty chalkboard mural I was commissioned for by @wichcraft in 2015 ?? They found out about my work because of my @willletterforlunch project getting shared by blogs and news sites. . I want to get real with you & talk actual numbers: I started this passion project for a little less than $100 in September 2014…and it resulted in $30,000 of chalkboard lettering client work in 2015 ? While there are no guarantees that a passion project will result in that big of a return in that short of a time period, EVERY?? PROJECT?? WILL?? EVENTUALLY?? HELP?? YOU?? EARN?? MORE?? . Passion projects are long-term investments in your creative business. A smart passion project can be SUCH a powerful marketing tool & business booster, no matter what creative industry you work in. I've seen designers, photographers, bakers, copywriters and more use clever side projects to get eyes on their work ? . ✨ If you're interested in starting a project of your own and want my guidance, there are only 6 more days to sign up for my online passion project class with the link in my profile! Class starts on October 28th and ends on December 2nd ? . Psst…I can’t believe this was 3 YEARS AGO! My long ass mermaid hair omg ?

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